Last year, the governments of Japan and the UK had signed agreement to cooperate with the aim of boosting O-RAN deployments
Japanese telcos NTT Docomo and Rakuten Mobile were selected by the U.K. government to work with local organizations with the aim of advancing the adoption of open RAN technologies in the country, local news agency Kyodo News reported.
According to the report, NTT Docomo and Rakuten Mobile will share O-RAN research with operators and institutions in the U.K.
Last year, the Japanese and British governments had signed an agreement to cooperate with the aim of boosting O-RAN deployments.
In October 2022, Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology selected NTT Docomo and Rakuten Mobile to subcontract R&D on O-RAN networks, according to the report.
The Japanese state-run institute said it expected that the two telcos will help improve trust in O-RAN and contribute to energy saving while exchanging information on the progress and state of development of the technology, the report adds.
Japan has entered into similar O-RAN partnerships with the United States, Australia, India and Singapore.
Meanwhile, the U.K. government had previously announced a joint ambition with local mobile network operators to increase the share of open and interoperable equipment in U.K. networks to 35% by 2030. The government noted that Vodafone and Telefonica are currently deploying their first live O-RAN sites using new market entrants.
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In December 2022, the governments of Australia, Canada and the United States backed guidelines for telecoms companies, developed by the U.K., designed to build a more competitive and secure supply of equipment for telecoms networks, including for 5G and 6G.
The U.K. government noted that the three nations are the first to endorse the U.K.’s principles for the development of Open RAN.
The four principles previously outlined by the U.K. government are:
Open disaggregation, allowing elements of the RAN to be sourced from different suppliers.
Standards-based compliance, allowing all suppliers to test solutions against standards in an open, neutral environment.
Demonstrated interoperability, ensuring disaggregated elements work together as a fully functional system.
Implementation neutrality, allowing suppliers to innovate and differentiate on the features and performance of their products.